Colors of the Sky
by Sasuke-N-Sakura4Ever
Summary: The Chinese New Year was always about good fortune. Perhaps that good fortune could bring her closer to him. Terra/Aqua


**Hello everyone! It has indeed been quite a long time since I have actually written anything on this account of mine. For that I am sorry, for I have been experiencing a severe case of the writer's block which has lasted for months on end. Inspiration actually hit me earlier when I was playing Kingdom Hearts II and I just had to put this down before I forgot it. So I hope you all enjoy, and I apologize ahead of time if the characters are OoC. I to this point remain unspoiled for most of the game of Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Kingdom Hearts or any of it's series.**

"I never thought Master would actually say yes."

Ven walked beside him, his hands folding behind his back as they lazily walked through the corridors of their beloved home. The sun was shining brightly through the windows as he and his older companion passed by them, feeling the warmth spread across his skin.

"Why is that so surprising?" the younger one asked, his eyes looking up to the brunette beside him, noticing the surprised glint in his eyes.

Otherwise Terra's face remained calm and composed. If Ven hadn't known him as well as he did, he never would have thought that the older one had been taken off guard.

"I mean...you've been training really hard, putting more effort into your strikes..." he grinned, "Even putting forth more effort into spell casting despite the fact you are horrible at it."

Terra rolled his eyes, "Thanks Ven..." he scratched the back of his neck, letting out a grunt, "That's something I _really_ want to hear from you," he muttered sarcastically.

Ven let out a laugh, "Hey that's what I'm here for!"

His bright cerulean eyes lit up, "Well now that you asked Master Eraqus..." he nudged him, "The only thing left to do is ask her right?"

Terra frowned, "Yeah...assuming that she'll even want to go."

The blond crossed his arms, "I don't see why she wouldn't want to..." he shrugged, "You aren't _that _bad to be around."

Dark blue eyes turned to look at him, "And just what is that supposed to mean?" he sounded almost offended, yet his tone was even still, like he was trying not to let the boy's comment get to him.

Ven raised his hands in front of his face in surrender, an almost nervous smile plastered upon his countenanace, "Aw come on Terra, you know I'm joking," he retorted.

"It doesn't help me gather courage quicker," Terra grunted, crossing his arms over his chest.

The younger boy blinked up at him innocently, "Why do you need that? This is Aqua we're talking about," he laughed, "All you have to do is walk up to her and ask her. It's not difficult if you really think about it."

Terra rolled his eyes, "Unlike you, I find it difficult to approach her sometimes."

It hadn't always been like that though, it only started to become like that a little before Ven had come to stay with Eraqus in the Land of Departure. It had just happened so suddenly; he would start to see little things about their female companion that he had never seemed to notice before. For example, her blue hair as it glided across her neck teasingly each time she swung her keyblade through the air, the way her eyes would shine like waterfalls as she would manipulate the water in the fountain of the courtyard with her fingertips, and of course he took note of the perfect shape of her body when they sparred, one time it had distracted him to the point where he allowed her a free hit to his shoulder.

Terra shook his head, wiping the girl from his mind for a moment, rubbing his forehead in frustration, how did she manage to have his mind so messed up nowadays? It honestly didn't make sense...and it had gotten to the point where he had even distanced himself from her slightly. Aqua no doubt knew of this, but chose not to say anything. After all, she still had Ven...and apart of his was envious of the boy for that.

"It's not really that hard Terra," Ven shrugged, "You sure you don't want me to come with you when you ask?"

"That's the last thing I need. Besides," he smirked, "You still have some training to get through with Eraqus."

Ven sighed, "Alright alright. I get it," he smirked, "It's one of _those_ type of deals huh?"

Terra raised an eyebrow at him, stopping right in the foyer of the grand castle, "What do you mean by that?"

Ven simply grinned, "Oh nothing," he blinked innocently, stretching a little too dramatically for Terra's tastes.

"Well..." he let out a big yawn, "I better go rest up! Master said I'll have a one on one session with him later and I know it's going to involve running."

He smirked at him before he started to walk up the stairs that led to their personal chambers, "Have fun on your date."

Terra's eyes instantly narrowed, reaching out to grab the boy's neck, but Ven was too quick for him, considering he was already at the top of the stairs.

The older chaser clenched his fist, "A date?" he rolled his eyes, "Yeah right, it's not like that," he grunted.

He was simply inviting her for night out so they could catch up with each other, considering he had indeed distanced himself quite a bit. Inside he felt slightly ashamed, Aqua was his friend, she didn't deserve that from him. And he wanted to make it up to her, that's all it was. Something in his chest disagreed with him, but he chose to ignore the feeling.

Turning around to exit the castle, he knew exactly where Aqua would be.

...

_Breathe in..._

_Breathe out..._

Her eyes were closed, her hands folded together in a meditative type of position, sitting in a comfortable spot against the marble of the fountain, her entire body relaxed, her mind blank.

It was easier to concentrate when she was outside, hearing the water splashing behind her soothed her nerves even more, allowing her to reach a point of relaxation she could not achieve if she had been inside her bedroom. This was always how she would start out her day, meditation was key to her training. If she wanted to perform spells correctly and efficiently, her mind must be open and relaxed. If it was not there was a chance either she would not be able to properly summon a particular spell, or that it could backfire on her, causing her to harm one of her comrades...something she wanted to prevent at all costs.

Aqua let a long breath escape her lips, enjoying the feeling of the sunlight upon her skin. Allowing the sounds of nature to take over her senses.

She wondered slightly when Ven would come to get her, normally he was the one who came looking for her to inform her that training with Eraqus was about to begin. As for Terra...she wasn't too sure what had been eating at him, the man hardly even seemed to speak a word to her anymore. Which was strange...considering only a few short months ago, he would always come to her and talk with her. Honestly she missed his company, sure it was nice to be around her younger companion, she enjoyed spending time with Ven a great deal and cherished each moment, but the fact that Terra had been avoiding her pained her slightly. She briefly wondered if she had done anything wrong.

Aqua shook her head.

_'Stop thinking about it...'_ she told herself.

Frowning slightly.

There was no point to dwell on such things, as much as she wanted to know what was bothering her older companion, there was really no point in trying to talk to him until he was ready to approach her...which was exactly why she hadn't made any attempt to reach out to him. She understood that he needed his space.

Slowly her mind started to clear once again, forcing herself to banish those thoughts into the back of her mind, despite the fact that once they had surfaced it was difficult to not dwell on them.

For now she would continue with her training...after all that was why they were all here. Becoming Master should be a top priority.

The sound of footsteps invaded her senses a little while later, it seemed like Ven had finally decided to come and get her for today's training. She had made no attempt to move from her spot...she wanted to her mind to be clear so she could perform her spells properly. Aqua could faintly see a shadow eclipse the sun in front of her from beneath her eyelids, the footsteps had ceased...his stare was different today...something about the way Ven was looking at her seemed off.

Aqua smiled gently, "I was wondering when you were going to show up. You know it's not good to oversleep before training Ven."

The figure was silent for a moment before clearing his throat, "Sorry to disappoint you, but I'm not Ven."

She finally opened one eye, slightly surprised to see the older Chaser standing in front of her.

"Terra?"

A look of confusion crossed her face, "To what do I owe the pleasure?" she chuckled, slowly allowing her hands to fall to her lap.

Terra smiled slightly, "Oh come on," he rolled his eyes playfully, "I can't come out here and say hi to you Aqua?"

Aqua leaned her back against the marble of the fountain, her eyes watching him with slight amusement, "So now you decide you want to talk to me?" she didn't really sound angry with him, more like slightly hurt, but otherwise her tone was normal.

His cobalt eyes looked away, almost as if he were ashamed, "I'm sorry..." he scratched his head, "I've just been acting stupid."

He sighed softly as if he were trying to think of how to phrase his words before his stare met hers once again, his gaze was intense, making her stomach jump slightly.

"I want to make it up to you."

Aqua seemed surprised by this, it took her a moment to get her vocal chords to work, "Oh?"

She simply sat there, looking up at him, her eyes never leaving his, "You know you...don't have to. I've already forgiven you."

He shook his head, "No...I want to," he smirked, "Besides I already went through all the trouble of asking Master."

"Asking Master abou-"

"I read up about something in the library a few days ago," he crossed his arms, looking up to the sky, "There's something happening tonight that I want to take you to see. That requires us to go to a different world from here."

Her eyes widened very slightly, "Oh I see..." she considered this, "Is Ven coming too?"

Terra frowned, resisting the urge to roll his eyes, "I was honestly thinking it could be just you and I."

Aqua tensed very slightly, the two of them? She absentmindedly dusted dirt off of her arm garments, looking away from him for a moment. It was almost like he was asking her out on a date...and that thought made heat begin to flood her face, which she quickly fought down.

He sighed, oblivious to her sudden nervousness, and obviously not good with this type of a situation, "I mean...we could catch up on each others lives and everything...besides...there's something I really want to show you."

He had read all about it in a book, it was like magic. Something in his heart told him it would really make her smile...and he would never admit it to anyone, but he liked to be the one who brought that bright smile to her face. It was like a light in a dark cave to him.

Aqua studied his face for a moment, it was really obvious he was working really hard to ask her this. She contemplated for a moment...it had been a while since the two of them had done anything together. The more she thought about it, the more she did miss the times the two of them shared when they used to cause mischief in the castle.

"Sure," she smiled, "I would like that a great deal," she said.

Terra felt his muscles relax the moment she said yes. Honestly he wasn't even aware he had been tense as he awaited an answer, nor did he notice that his breath had halted.

Allowing a grin to befall his features, "Great to hear."

He helped her to her feet with little to no effort, watching her dust herself off.

"I'll meet you here later tonight alright?"

She nodded, smiling slightly, rubbing her arm with the hand he had just touched.

"Alright."

Terra nodded, turning away and began walking.

"You'll like it, I know you will..." he said before taking off in small strides, opening and closing his palm.

It hadn't stopped tingling since he had let go of her hand.

...

Later that evening the two of them had met outside the castle gates, Ven had been watching them from the window as they walked away, giving Terra a big smile and a thumbs up. To which the brunette rolled his eyes...he had to learn that it was nothing like that! He sighed, almost exasperated, at least that is what he would keep telling himself.

Pressing onto the armor piece on his arm, a moment later he had changed into his armor which had been the way they had been able travel to others worlds. Aqua followed suit.

His eyes looked over to her.

"I want you to follow close behind me," he said, there was a slight echo in his voice due to the helmet, "You've never been there before and I don't want you to get lost."

Aqua nodded slowly. It made her wonder if he had actually been there before that he had enough confidence to lead her.

Terra grinned underneath the mask, "Let's go."

...

The world Terra had brought them to gave off an oriental type of feel...looking around her. They were currently in a very large square in front of a magnificent palace. It was very crowded in this area, shops, games, and other food stands were organized in neat aisles all over the large square. Red lanterns illuminated the entire area and all around her she could hear the sound of firecrackers going off and children laughing joyfully as they ran through the streets.

She simply stared, having never seen so many people in her life, nor ever seen so many people wearing red.

"Where are we?" she asked, looking up to her older companion, this was something she hadn't expected them to come to.

Terra simply smirked at her, "We're on a world called the Land of Dragons," his dark blue eyes studying the crowd, "And right now the people of this world are celebrating their new year."

He grew thoughtful, "It's the year of the Rabbit now I believe...according to the book I read anyway."

Aqua looked up at him, crossing her arms, a slight smirk on her face, "Someone has really read up on this," she said, her tone was clearly impressed.

Terra grunted, looking away, it was easy to tell she embarrassed him, "Yes well..." he sighed, "I'm not going to lie, it was a really fascinating subject to me."

Aqua placed a hand to his shoulder, "There's nothing wrong with that," she smiled slightly, "No need to get embarrassed Terra."

He rolled his eyes, '_It's your fault...'_ he thought to himself.

Shaking his head, he gently took her wrist, making her stumble, for she hadn't expected him to do such a thing.

"Come on..." he smirked, looking at her over his shoulder, "Let's just have a good time tonight. Forget about our goal to become Master, just have fun for once."

Aqua looked up at his eyes, hers wavered slightly for a moment, the man had really changed a great deal...she briefly wondered why he had gone through such a change, though she really liked it either way.

She allowed him to guide her around the city, he explained to her about the red envelopes that she had noticed some people giving out to what looked to be their family members. Apparently they were filled with money, also distributed in even numbers, considering odd numbers were mostly associated with funerals...it was indeed very interesting to know.

They had stopped by a couple of stands...the smell of food caused her stomach to growl. Terra looked at her as if he sensed her discomfort.

"Are you alright?"

Aqua nodded, "I'm fine...I just forgot to eat before we left..."

She rubbed her arm, "I didn't bring any money with me though..." she explained, trying to keep her eyes off of the small oranges that were displayed on the counter of one of the stands.

Moments later one was placed in front of her face, causing her to look up. Terra was staring right back at her.

"You know if you were hungry all you had to do was say something," he smirked teasingly.

Aqua grunted, "I didn't want you to spend your money on me Terra," she rolled her eyes, "I'm sure there are other things you wanted to get here."

He took her wrist, placing the orange into her hand, "Just take it..." he sighed, "I have plenty..."

He backed up slightly, scratching the back of his head, "And besides...Eraqus said...it was the gentleman's job to pay for the girl on this kind of thing...that's what he told me."

Aqua simply stared at him, "Terra...is this a d-"

"Come on..." he took her hand, "There was a reason I wanted to bring you here tonight...it's going to be starting soon."

His eyes almost lit up as well, it would be his first time seeing them in real life, "I want us to get the best view."

Aqua had to smile at his childishness, it was very rare for him to get this way anymore. He was way too serious for his own good sometimes. Then again Ven was way too hyper for his own good as well, and a little too mischievous...she wondered how the boy was holding up back home, but pushed that thought into the back of her mind. She was with Terra right now...and she was having a good time. It was very rare to be out with him like this...she honestly wished they could do this more.

He led them away from the square, outside the palace gates, to a small hill that overlooked the Imperial City. It was a breathtaking view in itself with the night sky being covered with a blanket of stars. The bright light caused by the lanterns in the city could still be seen from this distance as well. It was more quiet here, and she could faintly pick up the sound of a small stream close to them.

Terra ushered her to sit down beside him, to which she obliged.

"So...what exactly are we waiting for?" she asked, her eyes looking up at him curious.

Not that she minded listening to the sound of the crickets in the distance, or enjoyed the heat that radiated off of the man next to her, she was just too curious for her own good.

Terra grinned at her, "If I had told you that would ruin the surprise now wouldn't it?"

Aqua pouted, lightly punching his arm, "You're no fun."

"No I just want to take your breath away."

Aqua stiffened at that, he had said it so nonchalantly as well...she had to turn her head away to hide the faint flush she knew was creeping up on her face once again.

"How thoughtful..." she said softly, trying to keep her voice composed, but obviously failing.

Terra looked over at her, "Something the matter?"

"Nothing...your statement just took me off guard..."

Terra smirked, playfully pulling her close, resting his chin on top of her head, laughing when she tensed under his hold, "Don't tell me I embarrassed you."

A grunt escaped her lips, "You? Embarrass me? I don't think so."

Neither moved for a few moments, Aqua had closed her eyes, he was warm...and despite the fact she could defend herself...she honestly felt safer in his hold. It honestly felt like nothing could get to her.

"Hey...Terra I-"

She was cut off by the sound of explosions...on habit she pulled away, summoning her keyblade, looking around her.

Terra had gently taken her wrist, "Aqua...relax."

She looked down at him, and realized that she had stood up among all the chaos...

He simply pointed a finger towards the city, watching as what looked to be stars shot up from it, exploding into dozens of bright colors, from blue to green to red.

Aqua lowered her weapon, eventually dismissing it...standing there...almost hypnotized by the bright display. She had never seen anything like it before, it was beautiful.

"Is this magic?" she asked, allowing Terra to gently pull her down into a sitting position.

"No...these are called fireworks..." he hadn't been looking at the show before him, her expression upon seeing them was what he really wanted to see.

Placing his arm around her shoulder, pulling her close again, having liked the feel of her body against his earlier...she didn't fight back.

"They start to shoot off fireworks as a symbol that the new year has finally begun..." he explained, never taking his eyes off her.

She was stunning like always, the mystified expression on her face made her look even more so to him if that were possible. The colors lighting up her pale skin each time they would explode in the sky. He felt his heart begin to pick up the pace, beating like a drum in his chest. This was the reason he distanced himself from her in the first place. His heart went out of control when she was around...he had thought about letting her go, but as he contemplated over that, his chest had begun to ache...like he didn't want to. It was hard to deny that he thought of her as just a friend anymore...not with the way he had been acting over the last couple months.

"Terra...it's beautiful..."

Terra nodded, his eyes still on her, "Yeah...it is isn't it?"

He didn't exactly mean the fireworks.

She looked up at him, smiling brightly, "Thank you so much for bringing me here. I had a wonderful time," she said, the sound of the fireworks still going off in front of them.

Terra smirked, "I knew you would..." he said, brushing a small lock of hair from her face, slowly closing his eyes.

"Thank you for coming with me," he said in almost a whisper, moving closer to her face.

A gasp escaped her mouth when his lips met hers, he placed a hand carefully at the small of her back to keep her from pulling away. Her lips felt like soft petals from some of the flowers in the gardens back in the Land of Departure. Brushing his hand against her cheek gently, helping her to relax. He could feel her heart beating rapidly against her chest when he kissed her. He brought her as close to him as he was physically able to...

Aqua eventually relaxed to the point where she could return the kiss, slowly wrapping her shaking arms around her neck. The bright colors of the fireworks covered over them every now and then, the night's show all but forgotten to the both of them.

It felt like an eternity before they finally broke apart, each panting for breath. Aqua honestly had no idea what to say...silence was probably for the best right now anyway. She simply decided to rest her head against his chest, listening to his heartbeat pound a steady rhythm. Terra watched the fireworks overhead still, his fingers combing through the locks of her hair unconsciously, letting out a soft sigh.

"Sorry I..."

"No...don't be Terra..."

He felt her shake her head.

Terra had to chuckle at her ability to forgive him so easily, he wondered how she managed to always do that.

She lifted her head, slowly exploring the outlines of his face with her fingers. He closed his eyes, they were so soft...

"Perhaps...we could explore into this relationship further...after we take our Exams," she said, a smile on her face.

Terra opened his eyes slowly, stopping one of her hands with his as the finale of the fireworks show before them had just begun.

"Yes..." he smirked, kissing her forehead gently, "I would like that very much."

**Okay so I know hardly anything about the Chinese New Year...or anything, so this is loosely based off of that. And I apologize if Terra and Aqua are OoC or if things moved too quickly. I just wanted to get this idea out of my head. Let me know what you all think! ;D**


End file.
